23 Facts About Jimmy Seed

James Marshall Seed was an English footballer and football manager.

On leaving school at fourteen, Jimmy Seed worked at Whitburn colliery and when he reached sixteen played football in the Wearside League for Whitburn, along with his brother Angus who would have a short professional career with Leicester Fosse.

Jimmy Seed scored a hat-trick in the match and was promptly signed by Sunderland as a professional in April 1914.

Competitive league football was suspended at the end of that season because of the outbreak of World War I At the end of the season, the 20-year-old Seed joined the Army Cyclist Corps.

In July 1917 Jimmy Seed was gassed when a German aeroplane dropped mustard gas bombs over Nieuwpoort, Belgium.

Jimmy Seed was with other soldiers sheltering in the basement of a bombed out building when the gas seeped in.

Jimmy Seed was sent to England to convalesce and returned to France in August 1918, until being evacuated after being gassed in Valenciennes, France two months later.

Jimmy Seed never played an official first team game for Sunderland.

Jimmy Seed was discharged from the army in March 1919.

Jimmy Seed joined former England international Joseph Bache and ex-teammate from Sunderland Frank Pattison in the Mid-Rhondda side and they had a successful time in the seven months that Jimmy Seed was with them, winning both the Southern League Division Two and Welsh League titles.

Jimmy Seed was a virtual ever present for Spurs in the following seven seasons in the First Division.

Just two months after getting his cup winners medal Jimmy Seed was called up for the first of this five England caps on 21 May 1921 against Belgium, he never got a long run in the international side, playing his final game in April 1925.

At that stage Jimmy Seed was made team captain with existing skipper Fred Keen being dropped, Ellis Rimmer was bought from Tranmere Rovers and these changes triggered an amazing recovery.

Jimmy Seed often played even though he was not fully fit, because of his talismanic influence on the team.

Jimmy Seed then took up an offer from Arsenal manager Herbert Chapman to manage Clapton Orient.

Jimmy Seed played for the "Professionals" in the 1929 FA Charity Shield.

Jimmy Seed was tempted into the job by Arsenal manager Herbert Chapman, who told Seed that Arsenal had plans to buy Orient and turn them into their nursery club.

Jimmy Seed led the team into a variety of regional competitions set up during the war and Charlton reached a Wembley final for the first time in 1943.

The South Stand at The Valley, Charlton's home ground, is named The Jimmy Seed Stand in Seed's honour.

Jimmy Seed took over as caretaker manager in January 1958 for a short while after Pat Beasley had left the club.

When new Bristol City boss Peter Doherty took over, Jimmy Seed moved to manage Millwall in the early months of 1958.

Jimmy Seed got off to a terrible start at The Den, going nine matches without a win.

Jimmy Seed continued as a director of Millwall until his death on 16 July 1966, aged 71.